"..."
Wang Jiannan looked up at the screen but did not answer immediately.
He lowered his head and fell silent for a moment, seemingly deep in thought.
Only after a while did he slowly shake his head, his tone filled with emotion.
"I can't make sense of it either..."
"By rights, for someone like Li Ziyu to mow down Advanced Level 1 Ferocious Beasts as easily as chopping vegetables, the reason should be his own strength."
"But even a Qi-Blood Talent Awakener shouldn't be able to match a Ferocious Beast in strength."
"And yet Li Ziyu did it. There's only one possibility: he's already cultivated the Body Tempering Battle Skill the Martial Association gave him—the Wild Bull Body Tempering Technique—to Peak Level."
"But as far as I know, he only obtained that Body Tempering Battle Skill four days ago."
"To cultivate a Body Tempering Battle Skill to Peak Level in four days is simply impossible."
"So I have no idea what exactly is going on with Li Ziyu either..."
"We'll have to ask him after he comes out of the Martial Arts Exam."
"However, judging from the strength Li Ziyu has displayed, Xujiang City may not merely have a chance of breaking into Su Province's top ten this year. We might even be able to squeeze into the top three!"
The mayor answered as he spoke, excitement surfacing on his face.
His eyes shone with irrepressible eagerness.
In truth, there was one more thing he hadn't said.
Perhaps... Li Ziyu could do more than squeeze into Su Province's top three.
He might even make the national top three!
But he didn't say it aloud, because it was simply too hard to believe.
The national top three.
Not to mention Xujiang City—even in the entire Su Province, there hadn't been an examinee who made the national top three in the past several decades.
"Hmm? Why did Li Ziyu stop hunting Ferocious Beasts? Where is he going?"
"And Nangong Ao, Wang Long, Xia Lin, and the others—where are they planning to go?"
At that moment, the replay ended, and the screen once again displayed the live feed from the examination grounds.
Secretary Wang's puzzled voice rang out.
Wang Jiannan looked toward the figures moving through the screen, and a trace of confusion flashed in his eyes as well.
A moment later.
His eyes suddenly widened.
He abruptly leaned forward, bracing both hands on the desk before the live broadcast screen.
He stared fixedly at the figures on the screen.
Then he suddenly turned toward Secretary Wang and ordered in an almost hoarse roar:
"Quick! Contact the rescue team in the examination grounds immediately. Have them head to the central area, coordinates X11!"
"Li Ziyu and Nangong Ao are going to hunt that Level 2 Fierce Beast Bloody Rampage Bear!"
"What!? Hunt that Level 2 Fierce Beast Bloody Rampage Bear? All right! I'll arrange the rescue team immediately!"
"Absurd! That Level 2 Ferocious Beast is far beyond anything they can handle!"
"I hope they don't act rashly."
Several principals finally realized what was happening and anxiously slapped their thighs.
Although there was only one level of difference between a Level 1 Ferocious Beast and a Level 2 Ferocious Beast, their strength was worlds apart.
Even ten Peak Level 1 Ferocious Beasts attacking together wouldn't be enough to fill the gaps between the teeth of a Level 2 beginner Ferocious Beast.
The reason a Level 2 Ferocious Beast had been placed in the examination grounds was merely to put on a show.
They had placed an opponent the examinees could not defeat at their current stage, to remind them that there was always someone stronger and that they should always face Ferocious Beasts with the cautious, trembling-on-thin-ice mindset of walking on eggshells.
Put plainly, it was just a mascot. It was never meant for the examinees to kill.
Of course, it wasn't impossible for certain extraordinary geniuses to challenge opponents above their level.
But that was something Capital City and Demon Capital—those two resource-rich educational metropolises—needed to consider.
Their innate conditions placed limits on them. This simply wasn't something a small place like Xujiang City could even dream of.
That was why, when Li Ziyu had just begun hurrying toward the very center of the central area, they hadn't reacted due to their habitual way of thinking.
Now they were anxious enough to slap their thighs.
Wang Jiannan ignored the clamor around him, his expression returning to calm.
Yet his tightly clenched fists revealed what he was feeling.
"I only hope they're going over to take a look out of curiosity. They absolutely mustn't actually make a move!"
At the very center of the central area of the Martial Arts Exam.
A plaza that had been cleared out.
Li Ziyu stood at the edge of the plaza, silently gazing toward its center.
A figure in a golden-yellow combat uniform stood there, holding an ornate longsword.
It was Nangong Ao, who had arrived one step ahead of him.
However, Li Ziyu's attention was not on Nangong Ao at that moment. It was on the center of the plaza, several hundred meters away.
There stood a huge iron cage.
Inside it, a blood-red figure resembling a main battle tank lay sprawled on the ground.
Its eyes were closed as if it were sleeping, its massive body rising and falling.
With every breath, two thick streams of white air blasted from its nostrils, sending dust billowing in all directions.
"Beginner Level 2 Ferocious Beast, Bloody Violent Bear."
Li Ziyu stared at the Bloody Violent Bear.
By his rough estimate, it was at least eight meters long, its body comparable in size to two polar bears.
Even from far away, Li Ziyu could sense the terrifying power radiating from the Bloody Violent Bear.
Compared to this Bloody Violent Bear, even the Peak Level 1 Ferocious Beast Arm Blade Tiger he had encountered before seemed as tiny as a child.
If the two fought, the Arm Blade Tiger probably wouldn't withstand a single slap from the Bloody Violent Bear.
"I have to admit, although Nangong Ao is extremely arrogant, his spirit of courting death is still quite admirable."
Watching Nangong Ao approach the iron cage containing the Bloody Violent Bear one step at a time, Li Ziyu clicked his tongue inwardly.
There was a red button on the ground in front of the cage. As long as it was pressed, the Bloody Violent Bear would be released.
By then, Nangong Ao had already reached the button.
"I don't have the habit of stealing someone else's prey. Since Nangong Ao got here first, I'll let him fight it first."
Li Ziyu folded his arms and leisurely prepared to watch Nangong Ao's performance.
"Holy crap! Is that the Level 2 Fierce Beast Bloody Violent Bear? That aura, that size—it's way beyond our level, isn't it? Can we really handle it?"
Wang Long also rushed over from another area at that moment.
He first glanced curiously at Li Ziyu, who stood several hundred meters away, but his gaze was immediately drawn to the Bloody Violent Bear in the center of the arena.
His eyes widened in shock as he stared at the Bloody Violent Bear. Even lying there asleep, it still made his scalp crawl.
"Damn! I was thinking of testing a Level 2 Ferocious Beast's strength, but now it looks like that idea would be pure suicide."
"But Nangong Ao is seriously gutsy. He's actually planning to attack a Ferocious Beast of this level?"
Wang Long looked at Nangong Ao, who had already reached the edge of the cage, his face filled with admiration.
Bai Haoran had arrived as well, standing beside Wang Long.
However, his attention remained fixed on Li Ziyu.
At that moment, Li Ziyu wore a black combat uniform, a War Blade strapped to his waist. His posture was straight, his expression calm, his face as still as a placid lake.
Although he stood motionless, he gave Bai Haoran the same oppressive, weighty feeling as facing a towering mountain.
Bai Haoran couldn't help feeling startled—and deeply despairing.
Just standing there was enough to make him feel utterly powerless.
Just how strong was Li Ziyu?
"Classmate Li Ziyu, are you planning to hunt this Level 2 Ferocious Beast too?"
As Li Ziyu watched, Xia Lin's voice came from behind him.
Li Ziyu turned around.
He saw Xia Lin standing behind him in a tight-fitting combat uniform, her figure curving in all the right places.
Her expression was solemn as she looked at the Bloody Violent Bear in the plaza, then spoke to him again.
"Classmate Li Ziyu, with your current score, you'd have more than enough to enter any of the four top universities."
"It would be best not to take the risk. This Level 2 Ferocious Beast isn't something we can handle."
Li Ziyu smiled at her words but did not answer directly.
"Let's see how it goes."
Before you continue